I didn't get a chance to see all of my colleagues in person between announcing my departure and the departure itself, so I wrote an email to them to bid them all farewell. I got two compliments about it before I got out the door, so I thought I'd republish it here. No hard feelings, of course.
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Hi all,
As some of you are already aware, today is my last day as an employee of QinetiQ. Having given this decision a lot of thought, I finally tendered my resignation on Monday. I thought I’d send out an email to you all to mark the occasion.
I am reminded at this moment that a wise man once said to me, “hey, you, get the hell out of my wardrobe”. Even then, I knew that truer words had never been spoken – which shows you how wrong you can be, because I’m still friends with his wife. But that’s another story.
This story is not one I have taken lightly. To many of you, this development won’t come as a surprise. The past year and a half has had its moments, but in truth, this job hasn’t always been good to me, nor I to it. I can at least say we’ve always treated each other with patience and understanding. As such, the decision to leave was not an easy one, but it is a mutual and positive one.
We find ourselves in interesting times, in a period of social, political, economic and environmental instability that is far from over. You might imagine that such a scenario made me more than a little nervous about resigning. At the same time, I also saw it as a compulsion to act before things get any worse. I can weather the crisis of paying bills for a while, but I’m more enthusiastic about the opportunity to figure out what I want to do with myself, in my own time and with minimal distractions.
First things first, of course: I’m taking a bit of a break. I’m travelling to Japan for two weeks, spending a week back home in Townsville and attending a cousin’s wedding in Brisbane. When I return to Adelaide afterwards, I can get back into my career again. Who knows, maybe I’ll even get it right this time. Or not.
So, it is on this note that I leave my position of receptionist, economist, permaculturalist, IT support officer, wildlife wrangler, grocery shopper, Wii tennis champion, and occasional software engineer. To everyone here in Edinburgh and across the country, I want to thank you for your support and company throughout my time at QinetiQ, and I give you my best wishes for the future.
Warmest regards,
Aaron Nielsen
